Explain and discuss Aristotle"s "Doctrine of the Mean"
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Before I begin discussing Aristotle"s account of virtue in the second book of the " Ethics", it must be understood that I am pre-supposing a knowledge of the first book of this philosophical work, and Aristotle"s discussion of happiness being the best possible good for man, and his conclusion that the happy, and best possible life is the one of virtue. The next stage is to ask: What constitutes virtue, and what makes an action virtuous or a person, as a whole, virtuous? Aristotle"s argument is a straightforward and plausible one, yet in practice, it seems more complicated, once we...
enough reason and reassurance to make such an effort, and for the rest of our lives. Aristotle does not give us a terrible picture of the un-virtuous life, instead, has trust in our reasonable selves, not to want to be un-virtuous in his sense of the word. In my opinion, his argument is slightly too confident. We are not given enough justification to believe his doctrine will make us happier persons. Even if we are given the justification, they are not enough to make us cringe away from their opposites. Then again, we have yet to be properly "educated" .
enough reason and reassurance to make such an effort, and for the rest of our lives. Aristotle does not give us a terrible picture of the un-virtuous life, instead, has trust in our reasonable selves, not to want to be un-virtuous in his sense of the word. In my opinion, his argument is slightly too confident. We are not given enough justification to believe his doctrine will make us happier persons. Even if we are given the justification, they are not enough to make us cringe away from their opposites. Then again, we have yet to be properly "educated" .
Satire can be crude, but we don't have to read it crudely. Before we turn on Satire or let it turn on us, before we gorge ourselves on the lanx satura of delinquents, gluttons, womanisers, social climbers, parasites and the like, let us step outside, if we can, and...
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It is impossible, and undesirable, to separate war in and between ancient Greek poleis from their economies or from their societies, or to separate their economies and societies from each other. Nor is it helpful to consider 'war' as a freestanding factor that can be added, like an ingredient...
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The title mentions choice. It is important to realise that in describing a scene, writers are not merely mechanical mouthpieces for untidy reality. Conscious or not, their choice of what to include in the picture they paint feeds the reader a highly stylised representation of reality. Or rather, a...
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In scene 441ff Sophocles stages two opposed portraits: Creon regal and authoritative in his kingly robe, staff in hand, a male standing against the background of the city, whilst Antigone bows her head, hair ripped and mourning dress torn, a woman surrounded by the home and family. It is...
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In Nicomachean Ethics book VII, Aristotle presents us with a discussion on the states of character. A major part of this is his theory of acrasia, which translates into English imperfectly as something like weak-will or incontinence. Aristotle's theory of acrasia goes against the view that no one knowingly...
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